Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney Blog

Published on: December 3, 2018

CA Appeals Court Rules Against Allstate Insurance on Personal Injury Claim

When someone causes an injury accident in California and subsequently passes away, the injured victims are able to file lawsuits against the estate of the decedents to recover damages for their losses. The California Probate Code limits the amount of recoverable damages for plaintiffs to the policy limits of the decedents’ insurance that covered their liability at the time of their accidents.

As Meleski vs. Estate of Hotlen, Cal. Ct. App. Case No. C080023 shows, plaintiffs who prevail at trial may also recover their costs in addition to the policy limits in cases in which the insurance companies refuse reasonable settlement offers. Parties are encouraged to resolve their legal disputes through settlements. When they fail to do so, the parties that refused to settle for reasonable amounts may be ordered to pay the costs of the parties that prevail.

Factual and procedural background

Published on: November 15, 2018

Top Rated Local® Names Steven M. Sweat, Personal Injury Lawyers, APC as a Highest Rated Company in the State

by Steven M. Sweat

Top Rated Local® Names Steven M. Sweat, Personal Injury Lawyers, APC as a Highest Rated Company in the State

Our customers are to thank as we have been included on the list of highest rated companies in California by Top Rated Local®, a 5 pillar experience based rating system that analyzes ratings and reviews from hundreds of verified review sites online and then ranks businesses based on their overall Rating Score™ Top Rated Local analyzes ratings and reviews from hundreds of verified review sites online and ranks businesses based on their overall Rating Score™. This allows consumers to quickly and confidently find Top Rated Local businesses in their area. Top Rated Local is built upon 5 pillars of the customer experience and created to empower both businesses and consumers. This system was built to solve the everyday problem of fake reviews, competitor reviews, slanderous comments, blackmail, and acts of interference of business from competition.

Steven M. Sweat, Personal Injury Lawyers, APC is listed on the Top Rated Local site with impressive ratings CLICK HERE Over the past year, Steven M. Sweat, Personal Injury Lawyers, APC has obtained numerous awards and positive customer reviews based upon our emphasis on the client experience. It is never a pleasant experience to be the victim of a car, bicycle, motorcycle or pedestrian accident or any other type of personal injury. We aim to take a bad situation and make it better by being an advocate for each and every client to obtain the best possible medical treatment, stand as a go-between with insurance companies so that our client’s can concentrate on healing and obtaining the maximum possible compensation on each and every claim.

Published on: October 29, 2018

California Appeals Court Rules on Industrial Burn Injury Claim

by Steven M. Sweat

In California, companies that hire contractors and subcontractors are generally not liable when the negligent actions of the contractors or subcontractors cause injury accidents. However, as

Sandoval v. Qualcomm Inc., Cal. Ct. App., Case No. D070431 shows, there is an exception to the general rule. When the hiring companies have negligently retained control of the safety conditions at the facilities, the hiring companies may be liable to pay damages if their negligence was a contributing factor to the resulting accidents and injuries. If you have suffered an injury while working for a contractor at a job site, you might want to talk to an experienced lawyer to find out if you might have the basis to file a legal claim against the hiring company.

Factual background of the case

Published on: October 15, 2018

Turo Car Rental Accident Lawyer

by Steven M. Sweat

Turo-Car-Rental-Accident-Injury-Lawyer-Attorney

Visitors to Los Angeles as well as California residents rely on rental cars to meet their transportation needs sometimes. While most people are familiar with traditional rental car agencies that you might see at the airport and dotted throughout the city, fewer might be familiar with a rental car app called Turo. This app allows individuals who own vehicles to rent them to others at deep discounts as compared to rental car agency prices. However, rentals from an app come with some risks to both the drivers and others who are traveling around them. If you have suffered an injury in a collision with a vehicle that was rented on the app, getting help from an experienced lawyer is important. Here is what you need to understand about the app and how to protect yourself.

Overview of the car rental service

Turo Inc. is a company that was originally founded in Boston, Massachusetts in 2009 and is now headquartered in San Francisco, California. The company offers an app that people can use to list a car rental or to rent a vehicle. People who want to rent cars can sign up with their email addresses, Facebook accounts or Google accounts. After submitting photocopies of their drivers’ licenses, they are able to browse and book vehicles. The owners who have listed the cars can take up to eight hours to respond and may accept or decline the booking. Once a booking is accepted, the renter and the vehicle owner arrange to meet and exchange the vehicle. The owners can choose to purchase accident insurance from the company at the time that they rent out the vehicles or may opt to waive coverage if they have their own policies. Turo states that people who rent vehicles on their website do not have to have their own insurance policies.

Published on: September 19, 2018

Fake Bike Helmets Causing Major Head Injuries

by Steven M. Sweat

Cycling is a great way for people to exercise, enjoy some scenery or commute to their jobs in California. More Californians are turning to bicycles as an alternative form of transportation because of a desire to help to protect the environment while enjoying the health benefits of cycling. When bicycle riders share the roads with motor vehicles, they have a higher risk of suffering serious injuries or being killed in accidents because they have little protection from the forces of collisions.

Wearing bicycle helmets every time that cyclists ride their bicycles can help to protect them from severe injuries when they are thrown from their bicycles or struck in the head in accidents. Unfortunately, however, cyclists must be careful when they purchase bicycle helmets. According to a report in NPR, counterfeit bicycle helmets that do not meet U.S. safety standards are flooding the market via the internet.

Why counterfeit helmets are dangerous

Published on: August 31, 2018

Wrongful Death From Participation in Marathon CA Appeals Court Ruling

by Steven M. Sweat

When people participate in sports and are injured, they may have legal rights to sue in some cases even if they signed waivers of liability. In Hass v. RhodyCo Productions, Cal. Ct. App., Case No. A142418, a wrongful death lawsuit, the court found that an express waiver of liability and the primary assumption of the risk doctrine do not bar lawsuits when the conduct amounts to gross negligence.

Factual background

Peter Hass was a man who participated in the 2011 Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Half Marathon. After he crossed the finish line, Hass suffered a heart attack and subsequently died. The organizer of the event, RhodyCo Productions, provided production services and event management for the half-marathon from 2006 to 2011. RhodyCo Productions had to submit an emergency medical services plan to the city in order to get the permits to close the streets. The plan said that medical services would be provided by American Medical Response and the Palmer College of Chiropractic – West. The plan said that PCCW would supply event-trained medical personnel who were students with CPR certifications. It also said that there would be med tents located at several places, including at the finish line and that the head clinician, a chiropractic doctor, would be located in the postrace tent on the day of the race. In other parts of the plan, it stated that there would be one medical doctor and six emergency medical technicians at the finish line along with an automatic external defibrillator.

Published on: August 9, 2018

Los Angeles Lowering Speed Limits to Reduce Fatal Accidents

by Steven M. Sweat

Because of the high accident fatality rate in Los Angeles, the city implemented its Vision Zero initiative in 2015. The initiative is focused on reducing traffic deaths to zero by 2025. However, the city has some of the highest fatality rates in the U.S., leading the city to try new approaches to curb fatalities. One of these new efforts is adding new speed limits and better signs on streets throughout the city. If you have been injured in an accident or have lost a loved one, getting help from an experienced personal injury lawyer at the Law Offices of Steven M. Sweat might help you to recover compensation for your losses.

New speed limits announced

Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that the city was implementing new speed limits on 71 different streets around Los Angeles on Feb. 28. The new speed limits were implemented in an effort to address the city’s high motor vehicle fatality rate. Garcetti stated that the new speed limits would also come with increased enforcement efforts in order to gain higher compliance with them. He also stated that many drivers in the city simply drive with the flow of traffic and have no idea of what the speed limits are on the roads on which they travel. Most streets did not have their speed limits changed. However, 45 streets had their speed limits decreased while 26 had their limits increased. The mayor indicated that the changes were necessary to reduce the city’s fatality rate even further with the goal of reaching zero fatalities by 2025.

Published on: August 6, 2018

California Death Claim Summary Judgment Reversed on Appeal

by Steven M. Sweat

In California, the family members of people who are killed while they are working may recover benefits through workers’ compensation. When the accidents are caused by the negligence of third parties, the families may be able to file third-party lawsuits against the third parties in addition to their workers’ compensation claims. In some cases, failures to act may be compensable if they are negligent. In Peredia v. HR Mobile Services, Inc., Cal App. # F074083, the court ruled that a third-party safety consultant could be held liable for omissions if the plaintiff is able to prove all of the elements of the negligent undertaking by the consultant.

Factual background of the case

Oscar J. Perdia, Jr. was a 19-year-old man who was employed by Double Diamond Farms. Double Diamond Farms had hired HR Mobile Services to help the farm with workers’ compensation issues, training, loss prevention and human resources. HR Mobile agreed that it helped Double Diamond with workplace safety issues. Double Diamond Farm paid HR Mobile $24,000 per year for its services.

Published on: July 24, 2018

Los Angeles Still Deadly for Cyclists

by Steven M. Sweat

bike-accident-injury-attorney-Los-Angeles

Despite Mayor Eric Garcetti’s ambitious Vision Zero program, which he launched in August 2015 in a drive to reduce traffic fatalities to zero by the year 2025, bicycle and pedestrian fatalities in Los Angeles have increased. In 2017, 245 people were killed in traffic accidents in the city, and 60 percent of the people who died were walking or riding bicycles at the time of their collisions. This was almost twice the number of people who were killed in traffic accidents in the city in 2016, underscoring the need for further attention. A group of cyclists has become politically active in an effort to get better safety measures in place.

Frederick Frazier accident

In April 2018, Frederick Frazier, a 22-year-old man, went for a ride on his bicycle. Frazier turned onto the far right-hand side of Manchester Boulevard. He was riding his bicycle between the cars that were parked along the right side of the road and the traffic when a white Porsche sped up behind him. Instead of slowing, the Porsche increased its speed behind him as was revealed by a video of the traffic. The Porsche struck Frazier and his bicycle hard enough that the force of the crash broke his bicycle in half. The Porsche’s driver did not stop and instead drove away, leaving Frazier to die in the street. Frazier’s hit-and-run accident was the first one of four that would occur over the next six days. It also was the type of bicycle collision that we have previously highlighted as being among the most dangerous. Cyclists are often struck when they turn right onto busy surface roads such as Manchester.

Published on: July 23, 2018

Helicopter crash claim dismissed by the 9th Circuit

by Steven M. Sweat

In California and elsewhere in the U.S., the federal government enjoys sovereign immunity from liability in most cases. However, the immunity is waived in cases in which torts arise out of the negligent actions of employees while they are working within the course and scope of their employment. If you have suffered a serious injury because of the negligence of a governmental employee, you may be able to recover damages because of the waiver of sovereign immunity in tort claims involving negligence. As was demonstrated by the recently decided case of Morales v. United States, No. 17-15215 (9th Cir. 2018), the waiver of immunity does have some exceptions, however.

Factual and procedural background of the case

A helicopter was being piloted in Prescott, Arizona over the Verde River in June 2012 when it hit a suspended cable that was not marked. The cable was 40 feet up in the air over the river. The United States Geological Survey had installed the cable in 1934 to collect water samples and streamflow measurements. It had been used continuously since 1988 and was nearly invisible from distances of 100 feet away. Despite this, the USGS never marked the cable or added warnings about it because the cable did not meet the agency’s guidelines for marking.